Apple files a lawsuit against HTC

Apple today filed a lawsuit against HTC for infringing on 20 Apple patents related to the iPhone’s user interface, underlying architecture and hardware. The lawsuit was filed concurrently with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) and in U.S. District Court in Delaware.

“We can sit by and watch competitors steal our patented inventions, or we can do something about it. We’ve decided to do something about it, “We think competition is healthy, but competitors should create their own original technology, not steal ours.”

said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO.

HTC has become a prominent player in the rapidly-growing Android handset market, and is Google’s manufacturing partner for the Nexus One released earlier this year.

Apple is currently involved in a number of high-profile patent lawsuits primarily stemming from the iPhone, but also extending into other aspects of the company’s business. Apple and Nokia have filed suits against each other citing infringement of each other’s patents on the other hand, Kodak trying to sue Apple on Digital camera patent.